News Release

May 02, 2009BLSA Students Win International Negotiation Competition

Southwestern's BLSA Negotiation Team of Joanna Allen and Brent Tilley

defeated more than 20 teams from law schools across the country to win
the 2009 Dr. Ralph Johnson Bunche International Negotiation
Competition, which was held during the 41st Annual National Black Law
Students Association Convention in Irvine.

Professor Nyree
Gray said that although she helped the students prepare for the
competition, they were on their own and accomplished this most
impressive feat in a very challenging setting. Competitors were only
given a general fact pattern for each of the international issues,
which ran the gamut from piracy to gun control to extreme poverty and
world hunger. They did not know which part of the four-party
negotiation they would represent for each issue until they arrived at
the competition. Winning this kind of competition requires a show of
extreme diplomacy and strategy, Professor Gray explained. "Judges
commented that the winners were professional and assertive without
being aggressive," Professor Gray said. "Ms. Allen and Mr. Tilley are
very talented students and very skilled negotiators. They are to be commended for their
success."